Chapter 8
The next two weeks were a blur.
Sarah got weaker.
The nurse came every day.
Medication.
IV fluids.
Comfort care.
Liam spent every moment he could with her.
He read to her.
He drew her pictures.
He held her hand.
Ethan was with them as much as possible.
He worked from home.
He made them meals.
He sat with Sarah at night.
Talking.
Remembering.
Saying goodbye.
I tried to be strong.
For all of them.
I was twelve weeks pregnant now.
My stomach was starting to show.
Liam loved to talk to the baby.
He’d put his head on my stomach.
Tell the baby about his day.
About his mom.
About how he was going to be the best big brother ever.
It broke my heart.
And it made me love him more than I thought possible.
Margaret didn’t come back.
But she sent letters.
Lawyers’ letters.
Threatening to fight for custody of Liam.
Threatening to expose Sarah’s “past.”
Threatening to ruin Ethan’s business.
Ethan ignored them.
He had his own lawyers now.
They said Margaret didn’t have a case.
That Sarah was the mother.
And Ethan was the father.
And as long as they were fit parents, Margaret had no rights.
But we all knew she wouldn’t stop.
Then came the night.
I was asleep.
Ethan was in Sarah’s room.
He’d been sleeping on the couch beside her bed.
I woke up to the sound of screaming.
Not Sarah.
Liam.
I ran downstairs.
Ethan was holding Liam.
The boy was sobbing.
Sarah was still in bed.
Her eyes were closed.
Her face was peaceful.
The nurse was packing up her things.
She looked at me.
Sad eyes.
“She’s gone,” she said.
My heart stopped.
Sarah was gone.
I walked over to the bed.
I touched her hand.
It was cold.
She looked like she was sleeping.
Peaceful.
Finally at rest.
Liam saw me.
He reached for me.
“Mommy’s gone!” he screamed. “She’s gone and she’s never coming back!”
I took him from Ethan.
I held him tight.
“I know, baby. I know.”
He sobbed into my shoulder.
His little body shaking.
Ethan stood there.
Tears streaming down his face.
He looked broken.
Lost.
The nurse gave us some privacy.
We sat there for hours.
Holding each other.
Crying.
Saying goodbye.
The funeral was three days later.
It was small.
Just us.
Sarah’s best friend from Oklahoma came.
A few people from the diner where she’d worked.
Margaret didn’t come.
But she sent flowers.
A huge arrangement.
Expensive.
Impersonal.
We sent them back.
Liam was brave.
He held my hand the whole time.
He didn’t cry.
Not until we got home.
Then he broke down.
He ran to his room.
He slammed the door.
Ethan tried to talk to him.
Liam wouldn’t open the door.
“Go away!” he screamed. “I hate you! I hate all of you!”
Ethan’s face crumpled.
He sat down outside the door.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “I’m right here. Whenever you’re ready.”
I sat down beside him.
We waited.
For an hour.
Two hours.
Finally, the door opened.
Liam stood there.
His eyes were red and swollen.
He held out a drawing.
It was of Sarah.
Smiling.
Wings on her back.
An angel.
“She’s in heaven now,” he said. “With Grandma.”
Ethan pulled him into his arms.
“Yes, she is. And she’s watching over you. Always.”
Liam looked at me.
“Will you be my mom now?”
The question caught me off guard.
Tears filled my eyes.
I knelt down.
I looked him in the eye.
“I can’t replace your mom, Liam. No one can. But I can love you. And I can take care of you. And I can be here for you. Always. If you’ll let me.”
Liam nodded.
He threw his arms around my neck.
“I love you, Claire.”
“I love you too, Liam.”
Ethan watched us.
Tears in his eyes.
In that moment, we became a family.
Not the perfect family.
Not the family I’d planned.
But a family.
Bound together by loss.
By love.
By hope.
And then the doorbell rang.
I stood up.
I wiped my eyes.
I opened the door.
Margaret stood there.
Dressed in black.
A fake expression of grief on her face.
“I came to pay my respects,” she said.
I blocked the doorway.
“You’re not welcome here, Margaret.”
She tried to push past me.
“I have every right to be here. That boy is my grandson. And I’m not going to let you raise him. Not when you’re clearly unstable. Grieving. Pregnant. You’re not fit to be a mother.”
Ethan was behind me in an instant.
He stepped between us.
“Get off my property, Mom. Now. Before I call the police.”
Margaret’s eyes flashed.
“You’ll regret this. I’m going to fight for Liam. And I’m going to win. He deserves better than this. Better than you. Better than a dying mother’s memory. Better than a stepmother who can’t even keep her own wedding together.”
She turned and walked away.
I closed the door.
I leaned against it.
My heart was racing.
Ethan put his arms around me.
Liam hugged my legs.
“We’re going to be okay,” Ethan whispered.
I nodded.
But I didn’t believe him.
Margaret was going to fight.
And she had money.
And power.
May you like
And nothing to lose.
This was far from over.
